Sappers of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) have begun demining the territory near the settlement of Petrovskoye, a source in the DPR Defense Ministry told the Donetsk News Agency on Monday.

“Our sappers began demining the area close to Petrovskoye on October 9, as planned. The procedure continues today,” the agency quotes him as saying.

Members of the Contact Group signed a framework agreement at a meeting in Minsk on September 21 on separating the manpower and materiel in three pilot areas in the Donbass region. The document defines the procedure of disengaging the warring parties’ forces in the village of Petrovskoye (DPR), Stanistsa Luganskaya and the village of Zolotoye (LPR). The agreement notes that the parties are to begin withdrawal on October 1 to create security areas no less than 2 kilometers wide and 2 kilometers deep and complete the process within three days.

Ukraine’s representatives said via the Joint Center for Ceasefire Control and Coordination (JCCC) on October 1 they were not ready for the withdrawal in the Stanitsa Luganskaya area. No activities were carried out in the area on October 3 and October 7 either. The new, fourth attempt was scheduled for October 9, but it was not carried out either.

To date, the separation of forces has been successfully carried out near Zolotoye and Petrovskoye.